Belarus - Culture Smart!

The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

A landlocked country in Eastern Europe, Belarus's history has not always been an easy one. Often having served as a battleground between its Russian and European neighbours, and having suffering under Stalin's Purges and the Chernobyl nuclear fallout in more recent history, Belarusians are today attempting to carve out their own future. However, the regional political balance between it's Russian and EU neighbours is still proving pivotal.

Belarusians are enormously sociable, and have a huge capacity for enjoyment. While the hardships of the past decades have taught Belarusians resilience and resourcefulness, they need little persuasion to party, and view holidays as occasions for plenty of singing and dancing. A stoic fatalism, an engrained sense of folk superstition, good humour and a strong sense of social responsibility are some of the traits that visitors will encounter in this often conservative country.

Whether visiting as a tourist or travelling for business, Culture Smart! Belarus is a clear and concise guide to the country's cultural character and its formation. With plenty of advice on local attitudes and how to proceed in social situations, the guide is most helpful in helping visitors avoid any cultural faux pas, while enabling a nuanced understanding of its people that will serve to greatly enhance the readers experience, whatever his or her reason for traveling.

Pryvita ne! Welcome to Belarus!

No Whistling

Try not to whistle indoors; the sound is thought to fly out of the window, carrying everyone’s financial good luck with it!